In Depth

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<p class="graf graf--p">If we were going to be serious in our ambitious mission of reducing 50% of global emissions by 2040, we would need to ground ourselves firmly into climate science.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Ecologi’s humble beginnings were more fuelled by motivation and enthusiasm for the cause, than by knowledge of the complexities of Earth systems science. In order to truly maximise our climate impact, we would need to tap into a whole wealth of climate knowledge, from leading experts in the field.</p>
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<h3 class="graf graf--h3"><strong class="markup--strong markup--h3-strong">Starting from the top</strong></h3>
<p class="graf graf--p">Two years into running Ecologi, committing to use peer-reviewed climate science to inform the way we do what we do is ingrained in our organisational identity — but before that, it had also given us somewhere to start, as we began to build our subscription service to restore the planet. Fundamentally, it gave us the ‘what we do’ part in the first place.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">When Elliot, Lucy and Alex first sat around a kitchen table pondering climate solutions that they could channel funding to — if they could build the platform to scoop up the world’s pocket change — there were obvious avenues to start down: we’d support a broad array of renewables and other carbon reduction efforts, and we’d plant lots of trees.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">By that time, it was already well-established that growing trees is a singularly fantastic thing to do. Quite aside from drawing down carbon, trees provide habitats, stabilise soil, purify air and water sources, provide income to local communities, and much else beside. Re-greening our surroundings also has a measurable positive impact on our mental health.</p>
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<p class="graf graf--p">Purchasing credits to offset personal carbon footprints is altogether more controversial. Some influential climate thinkers don’t like offsets. Some people think that carbon offsets make us complacent, and leave us living our heavily carbon-intensive lives, just with less guilt. This might be true, though my hunch is that people offsetting their footprints probably already lead lower carbon lives than those who don’t.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Carbon credits are a mechanism for exchanging cash for verified emissions reductions. That, fundamentally, is what they are. They are a vehicle for moving money from you, to a climate project that will have (or has already had) a real-world impact.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">This vehicle is imperfect — and, sure, choosing to buy carbon credits requires some due diligence (which we’ll take a look at in this series). But the same is true for any method of climate action — <a class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" href="https://x.ecologi.com/articles/in-depth/growing-trees-responsible-reforestation" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://x.ecologi.com/articles/in-depth/growing-trees-responsible-reforestation">including planting trees</a>. Used well, carbon credits are a powerful tool for dragging down emissions — and this is the position of scientists much more qualified than myself, who readily admit that offsets make them feel uneasy. Offsetting isn’t going to solve this on its own; and it is <a class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" href="https://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/publications/reports/Oxford-Offsetting-Principles-2020.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/publications/reports/Oxford-Offsetting-Principles-2020.pdf">a necessary but not sufficient condition</a> for solving climate change.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">In the not-too-distant future, we are hoping to expand ‘what we do’ to include lots of other areas in climate action, and allow our subscribers to choose certain topics within climate that they’d like to contribute to. For our beginnings though, the science was behind us as we started out by offering subscribers two things: offsetting a footprint’s worth of CO2e emissions through purchasing verified carbon credits, and, separately, funding the planting of an awful lot of trees.</p>
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<h3 class="graf graf--h3"><strong class="markup--strong markup--h3-strong">Required reading</strong></h3>
<p class="graf graf--p">With Ecologi now up and running, our impact team set out establishing what scientific research would form the wider basis of our understanding of the climate problem. Nothing other than a broad, solid foundation of peer-reviewed, cutting-edge climate research would suffice to get us where we need to be.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">We were already familiar with <a class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" href="https://drawdown.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://drawdown.org/">Project Drawdown</a> — ‘the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming’ — who are firm favourites, and nowadays firm friends, of ours. Drawdown compiles a list of around 100 climate solutions, and sorts them according to their maximum emissions reduction potential, assuming universal global uptake. In the Ecologi office, Drawdown is roundly considered a real ‘north star’ of climate knowledge.</p>
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<p class="graf graf--p">Over time, we established more links with other voices in the climate space, uncovered more existing and new research, and developed a network of trusted authority figures across the movement.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">In building the operational machinery that runs climate impact here at Ecologi, we have leant on a number of sources, institutions and research pieces, including:</p>
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<li class="graf graf--li"><a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html">Rockström <em class="markup--em markup--li-em">et al</em> on planetary boundaries</a>;</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://www.sei.org/publications/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://www.sei.org/publications/">Stockholm Environment Institute</a>;</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://sciencebasedtargets.org/">The Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi)</a>;</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://www.bcorpclimatecollective.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://www.bcorpclimatecollective.org/">B Corp Climate Collective</a>;</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://climate-laws.org/legislation_and_policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://climate-laws.org/legislation_and_policies">Climate Change Laws of the World</a>;</li>
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<p class="graf graf--p">Further, we’ve also been keeping our fingers on the pulse across the climate sphere through professional bodies like IEMA and CIEEM, as well as the works of our favourite climate researchers, writers and activists, like Emily Atkin, Wawa Gatheru, Jon Foley, Kate Marvel, Naomi Klein, George Monbiot, Mary Annaïse Heglar, Eric Holthaus, David Wallace-Wells and many, many others.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">We also kept in touch with a number of the climate leaders who kindly took part in our <a class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" href="https://itstime.earth" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://itstime.earth">It’s Time</a> event in 2020.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Upon this foundation, it was time to start building an impact strategy.</p>


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<h3 class="graf graf--h3"><strong class="markup--strong markup--h3-strong">A committee for the climate</strong></h3>
<p class="graf graf--p">Resource constraints in our early months as a start-up meant that we weren’t likely to hire a whole team of scientists straight from the off.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">The solution was to tap into the expertise of scientists around the world who were able and willing to donate some of their time voluntarily. Thus, the Ecologi Climate Committee (ECC) was born, populated initially by just a small handful of climate academics.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">In thinking about how we work with our Committee, I’m reminded of <a class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" href="https://www.cambridge.org/gb/about-us/media/press-releases/why-we-disagree-about-climate-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://www.cambridge.org/gb/about-us/media/press-releases/why-we-disagree-about-climate-change">Mike Hulme’s fantastic explanation</a> in <em class="markup--em markup--p-em">Why We Disagree About Climate Change</em>, of three common approaches to the use of scientific knowledge:</p>
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<li class="graf graf--li"><strong class="markup--strong markup--li-strong">Decisionist:</strong> where the policymakers (in this case, Ecologi) make decisions to reach certain ends, and consult scientists (in this case, the Committee) to produce scientific knowledge to provide the means to reach these ends.</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><strong class="markup--strong markup--li-strong">Technocratic:</strong> where the scientists (the Committee) provide an informed consultation, and the policymakers (Ecologi) build policy which is tightly based on that.* This approach relies on the assumption that everything can be discovered and decided through the establishment of scientific fact, and also relies heavily on a competent and unbiased scientific community to produce ‘politically neutral’ ends.</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><strong class="markup--strong markup--li-strong">Co-productive:</strong> where the policymakers (Ecologi) and the scientists (the Committee) recognise that both policy ends and their operational means arise through the co-creation of shared knowledge encompassing both the scientific (the responsibility of the Committee) and the non-scientific (such as the commercial, the value-driven, the political, and the democratised; the responsibility of the Ecologi team).</li>
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<p class="graf graf--p"><em class="markup--em markup--p-em">*Consider the claims of ministers during the COVID-19 pandemic to be ‘following the science’. These kinds of claims point towards a technocratic decision-making system, where the role of policymakers is simply to do whatever the scientists tell them they ought to do. Whether that is actually what happened in that case is a question for another day.</em></p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Historically, the approach we have employed in working with the Committee since its inception has evolved, touching all three categories and leaning mostly toward the decisionist and the co-productive.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Commercial constraints — like budgets, market forces, commercial risk, and our reliance on some degree of democratisation to maintain subscriber satisfaction — mean that establishing a hard technocracy with our committee isn’t particularly realistic. This means that we are always walking a delicate balance between following what the experts are saying, and allowing our subscribers some degree of agency over the way their subscription is being used.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Some examples are below, to illustrate the kinds of things we might bring to the Committee agenda, with their approaches given in brackets afterward:</p>
<p class="graf graf--p"><em class="markup--em markup--p-em">We are building a subscription for the planet which incorporates the purchasing of carbon credits to offset personal footprints. Which project types would be suitable, and which should we avoid? (Decisionist)</em></p>
<p class="graf graf--p"><em class="markup--em markup--p-em">We’ve come across this new experimental negative emissions technology which is making bold claims in the headlines. What does the Committee think about these technologies, and are there any that have emerged so far which have some backing from the scientific community as a viable way to artificially sequester carbon? (Technocratic)</em></p>
<p class="graf graf--p"><em class="markup--em markup--p-em">We need to come up with a robust methodology for producing a risk profile for the projects available to us each month — some kind of automated risk engine that we can put our projects through, which will present us a snapshot of the risks relating to a project of its type in its location — and then we can use this snapshot to inform our project decisions. Let’s discuss what this should look like, and then let’s collaborate on the build, so that both the Committee and the Ecologi team are happy with the outcomes and we can use this as a regular tool to assess project risks. (Co-productive)</em></p>
<p class="graf graf--p">It was established in our Climate Committee meetings in late 2020 that in more or less every decision we make over which climate solutions to put our subscriber revenue behind — whatever policies and processes we have, and whatever microscope we scrutinise them under — there will almost always be some form of value judgement to be made at the end.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">For example, take our monthly decisions about which carbon reduction projects to support. Say, one month, we are presented with two projects:</p>
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<li class="graf graf--li"><strong class="markup--strong markup--li-strong">Project A</strong> is a small forestry-related project in a country in the Global South. It has a handful of <a class="markup--anchor markup--li-anchor" href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals">SDG co-benefits</a>, and also has a decent side programme attached to it, which supports local biodiversity. These types of projects specifically within this host country have recently gotten a lot of bad press, because some similar projects elsewhere in the country have been mismanaged. This project itself seems to be managed and monitored very well, but the bad press about similar projects may be reflected in poor feedback or a loss of trust from our subscribers if they have read the articles and we can’t convince them that we believe this project to be solid. And, if it turns out that there’s something we’ve missed, it could be that this project ends up hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons as well.</li>
<li class="graf graf--li"><strong class="markup--strong markup--li-strong">Project B </strong>is a large solar project in a different country in the Global South. It has fewer co-benefits than the first project, but has a fantastic community outreach programme, making a huge contribution to just a couple of the social and humanitarian SDGs. There’s nothing controversial about the project, but it’s also not particularly exciting. It’s ‘just’ a solar project, after all.</li>
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<p class="graf graf--p">Purchases from either project would be of equal volume (in terms of tonnes of emissions reductions), and both purchases would be for credits measured to the same carbon standard.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Which project should we choose?</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Hard scientific facts aren’t going to make the decision for us. The verified tonnes of carbon we’d be purchasing as credits are considered quantitatively the same, after all. At some point, we have to make a judgement call, a trade-off, relating to the many questions that arise when taking these projects side-by-side. For example:</p>
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<li class="graf graf--li">How do we rank or prioritise community co-benefits and biodiversity co-benefits?</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">If we select the ‘riskier’ but ‘more interesting’ project (A), is this better than picking the ‘safer’ but more ‘boring’ project (B)? Is the ‘boring’ project too uninspiring to motivate our subscribers? Is the ‘riskier’ project too risky to justify supporting?</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">Should we support the smaller project, where our funding will be more vital to the project itself, or should we support the larger project, which ultimately has a far greater potential for climate impact?</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">What else have we supported recently? Have we supported too many of the same project types lately? How do these projects match up to our wider impact strategy framework? Would there be any negative feedback from our community if we go for <em class="markup--em markup--li-em">yet another </em>solar project, or <em class="markup--em markup--li-em">yet another </em>forestry project? The same questions also apply to the project host countries.</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">What is the price difference between them? Is one more expensive per tonne than the other? Would a higher price indicate better quality? Does a lower price mean nobody else wants to buy the credits?</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">How well monitored are the projects? Are we satisfied that they meet our internal requirements for what constitutes a well-run carbon reduction project? What about additional third party monitoring?</li>
<li class="graf graf--li">What about social proof? Have other similar organisations supported these projects before, and how did that go?</li>
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<p class="graf graf--p">This is why a full technocracy cannot work in this setting. If I, as the Committee chair, were to put these questions to the Committee during our regular meeting, I’d be met by shrugs — and quite rightly. “All these factors aren’t directly comparable,” they would tell me. “We can give you advice and pointers, but there will always be trade-offs, and it’s a value judgement that eventually you’ll just have to make.”</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">I know this, because we have discussed it in the Committee. And that is what they said.</p>


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<p class="graf graf--p">For this and similar reasons, in early 2021, we began to understand that not everybody on our Climate Committee should be a scientist, because not everything we need to do is science.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">When, in June, we put out posts online seeking out new members to add to the Climate Committee, we sought out more climate scientists and ecologists, yes, but also science communicators, commercial sustainability experts, disaster risk reduction (DRR) experts, PhD students, and even environmental ethicists.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">With this, our recent Committee expansion gave us a broader field of individuals to consult, and would help bring more perspectives to the table when we are co-producing knowledge that guides the climate impact Ecologi has.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">The science is still there, undiluted — but now we also have a broader range of perspectives to help us consider the non-scientific considerations as well.</p>
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<h3 class="graf graf--h3"><strong class="markup--strong markup--h3-strong">Knowing our limitations and identifying where improvements can be made</strong></h3>
<p class="graf graf--p">I’m very proud of our Climate Committee, and I consider it a great honour to work with experts right at the top of their game, every month. Each time I come away from our Committee meetings I feel like I’ve learned something, having enjoyed an interesting, productive and friendly discussion among a set of talented and warm individuals.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">This all said, all that we’ve built, and that I’ve described in this post, is not necessarily a perfect formula. Consensus does not always come easily, and following each meeting sometimes I’m left with as many questions seeking answers as I had when we started — which can be taxing. But we are Ecologi — and we are always looking to improve.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">To highlight one key area I’d like to improve upon as we grow: I’d like to better accommodate climate scientists, leaders and thinkers located in Eastern time zones. Our regular Committee meeting is held over video link, and is set at 5pm UK time on a weekday, which is reasonably comfortable for most people West of about GMT+3.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">But it inevitably leads the Committee to be exclusionary for those based in time zones further East than this — because this would potentially require them to join a Committee meeting late in the evening (e.g. New Delhi) in the middle of the night (e.g. Singapore), or in the small hours of the morning (e.g. Melbourne or Auckland).</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">This will improve. As our Committee grows, we’ll host multiple meetings per month, at different times of day, to accommodate a truly global expert community.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">Another improvement that I’m fond of, is that we recently committed to offering a fee to all Committee members for their time. It is my belief that we should pay Committee members for sharing their valuable insight, and also that being financially comfortable enough to support the Committee for free should never be a prerequisite to taking part. Some members have opted to waive this fee and donate it instead as climate impact on our platform, and that’s fine too — but I’m glad that the offer is there. And I’m proud that Ecologi is established enough now to be able to afford this.</p>
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<p class="graf graf--p">There will continue to be bumps in the road, I’m sure. But I also believe that our Committee is a truly vital piece in the Ecologi puzzle. We won’t always get it right, but that’s okay. If we stumble, then we’ll be open and honest with our supporters, hold ourselves accountable, and learn our lessons. Then we’ll dust off our knees to get back to work.</p>
<p class="graf graf--p">And what an honour and a pleasure it is, to bring the group together remotely each month. Together, we learn and we grow.</p>
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<p class="graf graf--p"><em class="markup--em markup--p-em">Next time in this series, I’ll be introducing you to some of our Committee members, to lift the lid on who these experts are that are supporting us to build Ecologi’s climate impact strategy.</em></p>
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Meet our Impact Team

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ecologi’s mission is to inspire and empower businesses to accelerate global climate action. In everything we do, we’re guided by our company values:</span></p>
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<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Planet first</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Always accountable</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Change-makers</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Act, together.</span></li>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Because of our values, we put impact for our climate, nature and people, right at our heart: and this is driven by our Impact Team.</span></p>


<h2><b>Meeting the Impact Team </b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Impact Team is responsible for directing our efforts toward meaningful climate action aligned with the latest science and industry best practice. The team’s role encompasses several key areas, including:</span></p>
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<li><b>Ensuring adherence to best practice </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">through our research bases, rigorous due diligence processes, and expert understanding of key sustainability frameworks.</span></li>
<li><b>Building and managing relationships</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> with some of the world’s leading implementation partners to facilitate the delivery of high-impact climate solutions.</span></li>
<li><b>Delivery of emissions measurement and reporting projects</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, assisting customers with data collection, emissions calculations, and helping them identify effective decarbonisation strategies.</span></li>
<li><b>Engaging with academia</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, including the stewardship of the Ecologi Climate Committee — our advisory network of academic and industry experts on topics relevant to our work.</span></li>
<li><b>Providing climate and sustainability expertise</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and strategic guidance to align our products and services with the latest in environmental science and industry best practices and to guide our internal policy.</span></li>
<li><b>Driving our industry forward </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">through participating in industry advisory groups, policy advocacy groups, consortia and alliances with Ecologi’s peers and partners in corporate sustainability, </span></li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;"></li>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In this article, we’ll meet the team making it all possible!</span></p>


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<h2><strong>Sam Jackson, Director of Climate Science &amp; Impact</strong></h2>
<p><strong style="font-size: 16px;">MSc, MA, PIEMA REnvP, FRSA</strong></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sam is department lead for Impact at Ecologi, and a member of Ecologi’s senior leadership team. He is responsible for providing climate and sustainability expertise and strategic guidance to the business, with the priority of aligning Ecologi’s products and services with the latest in environmental science and industry best practice. Sam is an advisor to a number of industry groups and a regular speaker at sustainability industry events.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sam has a varied background in climate science, international operations, development, and environmental governance. In his early career, he worked primarily in the charity and sustainable tourism sectors before moving permanently into climate and corporate sustainability. Sam holds Master’s degrees in International Relations and Climate Change Science and Policy from the University of Exeter and the University of Bristol. He is a Practitioner Member of IEMA, a Registered Environmental Practitioner with the Society for the Environment, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. </span></p>


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<h2><strong>Eleanor Turner, Climate Solutions Manager</strong></h2>
<p><strong><span style="font-size: 16px;">MSc, BSc, PIEMA </span></strong></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Eleanor has a senior role within the Impact team, helping to guide our strategic direction and shape our theory of change, as well as supporting the team across all Impact functions. Eleanor leads much of our external engagement with academia, including managing the Ecologi Climate Committee: our advisory network of academic and industry experts across a wide range of topics relevant to our work. She also works cross-functionally around the business, to drive much of Ecologi’s own internal sustainability efforts.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Eleanor holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Science from the University of York, in addition to a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Geography. Eleanor’s career began as a sustainability consultant within the engineering and construction industry, focusing on BREEAM assessments and decarbonisation across the public sector. Eleanor then moved to an in-house sustainability role within the consumer goods industry, focused on internal sustainability strategy and greenhouse gas inventory management, before joining Ecologi as our Climate Solutions Manager.</span></p>


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<h2><strong>George Gibson, Senior Carbon Accounting Manager</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">George provides technical expertise to support the development of the carbon accounting methodology underpinning our Ecologi Zero platform for businesses. George also leads the consultative delivery of emissions measurement and reporting projects with our customers, guiding them through data collection and helping them to identify decarbonisation strategies. Key to his role is ensuring compliance with the relevant standards and that the tool provides a comprehensive and accurate account of a business’ emissions.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">With a degree in Economics and Management from Cardiff University, specialising in economic development, George has previously worked as a sustainability consultant providing insight into compiling greenhouse gas inventories to measure and report emissions, developing decarbonisation strategies, setting Science-Based Targets and supporting businesses in attaining B Corp certification. </span></p>


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<h2><strong>Katie Pownall, Impact Partnerships Manager</strong></h2>
<p><strong>MBiol, MRSB, ACIEEM</strong></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Katie works closely with Ecologi’s reforestation and other implementation partners, ensuring that funding from our community goes to the best projects, and sharing stories about the projects with the Ecologi community. As Ecologi continues to grow, Katie is helping to identify new types of impact projects, enabling Ecologi customers to fund cutting-edge climate action with some of the most well-respected organisations around the world.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Katie has a Master’s degree in Biology from University of York, where she focused on ecology and conservation, and during which she worked in the North York Moors National Park’s Conservation department, where she gained knowledge about protected species, habitat management, and on-the-ground conservation work. This  hands-on experience combined with her understanding of the theory of conservation and ecology helps Katie to guide Ecologi’s decisions so that we optimise our positive impact on people, biodiversity, and the planet.</span></p>


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<h2><strong>Lucy Gemmell, Carbon Portfolio Manager</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In her role as Carbon Portfolio Manager, Lucy drives our in-house due diligence to identify top-tier carbon avoidance and removal projects, manages our relationships with project developers, and helps to educate customers in ensuring they are communicating about their impact correctly. In her work, she manages our relationships with a number of our key strategic impact partners including Sylvera and Earth Blox. Lucy originally joined Ecologi in 2022 as part of our Commercial team and spent a year working cross-departmentally, immersing herself in the voluntary carbon market before transitioning permanently into the Impact team. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lucy has a diverse background, having managed a boutique real estate brokerage in her earlier career and chaired the board of an education-based NGO in Johannesburg, South Africa. She is currently pursuing a Master&#8217;s degree in Climate Change and Development, following the recent completion of an ESG Specialisation from the Corporate Finance Institute.</span></p>


<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Alongside the Impact team, we have some incredible individuals who assist us in reaching our goals and supporting our work. Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do, and their contributions help us stay on track and maintain momentum. </span></p>


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<h2><strong>Monsoon Modi, Commercial Operations Executive</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Monsoon originally joined Ecologi in 2022 as part of our Customer Success team and spent a year working cross-departmentally before moving into the Commercial team, now as an Operations Executive. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Key to her role is optimising commercial projects, building commercial resources and providing support for small businesses along their sustainability journey. Monsoon also supports the Impact Team with internal educational material, project reports and administrative tasks. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">With a degree in Politics and International Relations, Monsoon is currently pursuing a Master&#8217;s degree in Environmental Sustainability at the University of Edinburgh.</span></p>


<h2><strong>Climate Committee </strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ecologi’s Climate Committee was founded in 2021 to bring together industry experts and research professionals who sit outside of the business to bring specialist knowledge and support to maximise our climate impact. Our committee members bring best-practice thinking, and ongoing developments with regard to global climate science, carbon accounting methodology, nature-based projects and the voluntary carbon market through our three working groups, Nature, Climate and Policy.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The committee supports the Impact team through providing expert knowledge across specialist fields which help shape the future of the team, and the wider business. In turn, this improves our internal decision-making and strategy development through staying at the forefront of industry developments and innovation. </span></p>


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Case studies

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Case study: the Focusrite Group

<h2><b>About the Focusrite Group </b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://x.ecologi.com/focusritegroup" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Focusrite</a> is not your average audio technology group. This passionate bunch is united by a single objective: to smash through barriers and unleash boundless creativity in the world of sound.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Founded in 1985 and based in High Wycombe, this team of over 500 is on a mission to remove barriers to creativity. And they believe that technology can play an important role in breaking down other barriers too, including geographical, social, economic, and even environmental. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusrite is an organisation that’s driven by purpose, with a keen desire to be a force for good in the world. Responsible practices are an essential part of how they do business, and that includes keeping a keen eye on their impact on the environment. </span></p>


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<h2><b>Issue</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusrite has been working to reduce its environmental impact for many years and in 2020 developed a carbon accounting process that now provides near real-time data on Scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This progress has allowed the team to set goals, but they are in the process of applying to set Science Based Targets (SBT) to replace them. In the meantime they are already aligning their approach with SBT guidelines. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As a UK-based company, Focusrite is committed to 2050 as the ultimate deadline for net-zero, but they want to get there quicker. So their approach is not to set a net-zero target year until they have gone through the SBT application process by 2026 at the latest, and instead use carbon reduction metrics and targets to set them up for long-term success.</span></p>


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<h2><b>Challenges</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The team at Focusrite use emissions data to guide action, and their emissions are largely dominated by their hardware products, which account for 96% of GHG emissions. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">They have already made good progress in reducing the use of aluminium, plastic, and product packaging, with many more areas under review. As they roll out changes across their product range, the team aims to increase the pace of their reductions, with any new products being designed from more sustainable materials from the start.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusrite is striving to become a sustainability leader in its industry, setting the standard for peers to emulate. </span><b>Environmental stewardship is a big part of that, and the message from the entire employee base is that they want to support nature beyond their value chain. This is why they reached out to Ecologi to help them do more good for our planet. </b></p>


<h2><b>Solution </b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusrite has worked with Ecologi since 2021. Ecologi supports the team to fund tree planting for internal initiatives like employee charity fundraising, but also to offset the wood used in their products. The wood used is already FSC certified, so by planting trees with Ecologi they replace more than they consume. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusrite also works with Ecologi to support projects to mitigate any remaining Scope 1 and 2 emissions they can’t avoid. So far they have funded 17 projects, including a solar power project in Morocco, supplying high efficiency cookstoves in Somalia, and preserving Amazonian rainforest in Brazil.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The team isn&#8217;t shy about sharing Focusrite’s success. They talk about their climate impact prominently in their annual report and employee newsletter, and dive into the details in their dedicated environment and climate reports. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Taking such positive climate action has boosted Focusrite’s reputation with customers and colleagues alike. They have enjoyed press coverage for their tree planting, which positioned them as a leader in their industry, and they have even had employees join the company purely because of their environmental sustainability programme. </span></p>


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<h2><b>Outcome</b></h2>
<p><b>Since 2021, the Focusrite Group has funded the planting of 89,080 trees, supported the prevention of 132 tonnes of CO2e from being emitted, and funded the removal of 81 tonnes of CO2e from the atmosphere. In total 17 different projects have been funded. </b></p>


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<h2><b>Is your business ready to take climate action?</b></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">If this article has inspired your business to start its climate journey, talk to our team today.</span></p>


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What happened at COP29

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This year’s Conference of the Parties is underway in Baku, Azerbaijan and will run until the 22nd of November. Our team at Ecologi are monitoring the daily events to give you real-time analysis and reactions to the developments and agreements taking place. </span></p>
<p><b>What is COP29?</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Click </span><a href="https://x.ecologi.com/articles/uncategorised/what-to-expect-at-cop29" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight: 400;">here</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> for a comprehensive guide to all things COP29. </span></p>
<p><b>What happened at COP28?</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Click </span><a href="https://x.ecologi.com/articles/blog/whats-happening-at-cop28" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight: 400;">here</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to read a full report of the event in 2023. </span></p>


<h2>Overall sentiment &#8211; COP29 wrap-up</h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The overall sentiment at COP29 reflects a little bit of progress and an awful lot of frustration. As is often the case at the climate COPs, any progress that does get made is often overshadowed by the missed opportunities – and this one is no exception on that front.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The largest positive from this COP is in the agreements made on operationalising carbon market standards under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. This consensus signals hope for greater transparency, higher standards, and clear opportunities for businesses to engage in global climate action projects, in a new carbon market managed under the UN framework. These draft documents on Article 6 were published on the first day of the COP and have stayed relatively static since then – indicating that agreement was achieved early. They did come under criticism though, with the Presidency offering up documents to be accepted as-is, with no opportunity for countries to scrutinise the wording.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The COP as a whole, and its broader negotiations on a range of other topics, have been marred by tensions, frustrations, and geopolitics. Proceedings were thrown somewhat, by world leaders disappearing from the world leaders’ summit at the conference and reconvening in Brazil (next year’s COP host country) for the G20 – leading to </span><a href="https://www.gov.br/planalto/pt-br/media/18-11-2024-declaracao-de-lideres-g20.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight: 400;">a multilateral G20 declaration</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> which seemed to both celebrate and chastise the country negotiators back in Baku. </span></p>
<p><b>Geopolitics making things difficult </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">– COP29 has taken place against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions between a wide range of countries, which have diverted attention and resources away from climate action and have complicated negotiations. Add to that the problems coming from the COP itself – from country boycotts, to backhanded oil and gas deals, to threats to drop out of the Paris Agreement by Argentina (a threat which was later clarified as rescinded) and by the USA (which is likely to be upheld under the incoming administration) – and it’s easy to wonder how nearly 200 countries can be convinced to agree on anything at all. Let alone an issue with the gravity, urgency, and complexity of climate change.</span></p>
<p><b>Poor management by the Presidency </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">– if you’ve followed our daily coverage you’ll have spotted over the past two weeks how this COP has felt quite chaotic and frenetic. It hasn’t really felt throughout proceedings that the Presidency is in control of things – and this applies on the diplomatic level but also in a practical sense, with uncomfortable stories coming out of the conference centre about poorly-managed bathroom facilities and catering. On the draft decisions, the Presidency’s strategy has been cavalier and uncharitable, with something of a ‘take-it-or-leave-it’ attitude to negotiations which isn’t helpful or conducive to compromise. On the last day of the COP, the Climate Action Network awarded the Azerbaijani Presidency their </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fossil of the Day </span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">award because it “doesn’t understand the gravity of the Presidency, or for that matter the value of civil society”. This is a damning assessment, but one which is hard to disagree with.</span></p>
<p><b>Somehow, fossil fuels are still the elephant in the room </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">– we heard from UNEP before COP29 started that </span><a href="https://www.unep.org/resources/emissions-gap-report-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span style="font-weight: 400;">global emissions are still rising</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, driven by continued fossil fuel use – and yet COP29 has failed to advance any fossil fuel reduction commitments. In Dubai last year, we saw the agreed cover text mention the “phase-down of unabated coal power”, the “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems” and the “phasing out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies” (which was pretty weak in itself). This year, the fossil fuel lobby was typically massive – with over 1,700 fossil fuel lobbyists in attendance. Despite the overwhelming scientific evidence showing that fossil fuels must stay in the ground, the dominance of fossil fuel interests has continued to undermine progress, with the Arab Group in particular this year refusing to back any texts that reference the phasing out of fossil fuels. The COP29 texts on the UAE dialogue and the Mitigation Work Programme (which ought to have been used to further the outcomes of last year’s Global Stocktake) were meant to enhance climate mitigation. The final version of the MWP fails to mention the transition away from fossil fuels, the 1.5ºC warming goal or the Global Stocktake and its outcomes, and the UAE dialogue on how to proceed on the Global Stocktake wasn’t adopted at all. Interestingly, the earliest drafts did mention the 1.5ºC warming goal and the seriousness of 2023 being the warmest year on record. As the drafts progressed this messaging was removed, despite many calling for the final text to be more ambitious and specific. A deal on the MWP was adopted during the closing plenary session without any intervention. </span></p>
<p><b>Article 6 and UK government provide a few reasons to be positive for businesses </b></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Whilst the overall sentiment at this year’s COP29 has been disappointment, particularly regarding the pace of global climate action and the lack of firm commitments from key global players, there are still some glimmers of hope for businesses. Among the more promising developments is the aforementioned progress on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and the UK government’s climate commitments. The outcomes on Article 6 pose a step forward for businesses. By advancing frameworks for international carbon markets, COP29 has created a clearer pathway for companies to engage in high-quality carbon offsetting and trading, fostering transparency and credibility in the process. This opens up new opportunities for organisations globally to progress towards net-zero targets whilst supporting climate action projects and global emission reductions. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The UK government’s renewed focus on climate policy has created incentives such as increased funding for green technology, support for nature based projects and streamlined regulation for sustainable investment, catalysing innovation and market growth. The developments at COP29 have reinforced the role of businesses as a key actor in the fight against climate change when world leaders fall short on agreeing ambitious climate goals. Through embracing innovation, adopting bold emission reduction targets and funding climate action, companies can fill the leadership gap and accelerate progress where governments falter. </span></p>


COP29 - Daily updates 

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<p>The two-week conference, scheduled for November 11th-22nd will bring together representatives from all countries that have agreed to be bound by the UNFCCC. The conference takes place annually to negotiate new measures, develop policy and review progress against the goal of limiting climate change.</p>
<p>Azerbaijan, the host nation, has received its fair share of criticism for becoming this year’s COP president. Oil and Gas make up 92.5% of the country’s GDP per capita, and President Ilham Aliyev has stated his support for oil and gas producing nations to continue investing in the sector, clashing with last year’s COP28 outcome in which all nations called for accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels.</p>


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<h2><strong>The key talking points and priorities in the run up to COP29</strong></h2>
<p>This year, priorities are focused on climate finance, with COP29 being coined the <i>Finance COP</i>, this is reiterated by the programme of scheduling with Finance, Investment and Trade taking priority spot on the first day of discussions.</p>
<p>Energy and Science are also high on the agenda, while Nature and Biodiversity and Oceans and Coastal Zones take more of a back seat, only being scheduled for the final day before negotiations; naturally, this comes as a disappointment as this signals these areas of discussion are considered lower priority when compared with energy and finance.</p>
<p>It is likely momentum and attendance will decrease by the end of week two and could undermine the urgency needed to address the implications of climate change on nature globally and reduce their integration into wider climate strategies.</p>
<p>The following key priorities are expected to lead discussions at COP29;</p>
<h3><strong>New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG)</strong></h3>
<p>Developing countries, particularly those most vulnerable to climate change, require substantial financial support to transition to green economies and adapt to climate impacts. COP29 aims to agree on a new commitment to provide annual climate finance to developing countries, replacing a goal of $100 billion per annum set in 2009 at COP15. The World Economic Forum states that ‘<i>the NCQG must be ambitious yet realistic, balancing the financial capacities of developed countries with the urgent needs of developing nations’.</i></p>
<h3><strong>Growing the loss and damage fund</strong></h3>
<p>Established and operationalised at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, the loss and damage fund acknowledges the disproportionate burden that climate change places on vulnerable nations. It is a financial mechanism that helps countries cope with the loss and damages they face due to climate change – this includes loss of life, damage to infrastructure and displacement.</p>
<p>At COP29, there is hope to see significant progress in the fund’s operationalisation and funding. Countries are expected to make substantial pledges to the fund to ensure it can meet the needs of developing countries. To date, major contributors include the UAE, Germany and the United States. Other big-emitting countries such as China and Saudi Arabia are yet to announce their intention to contribute to the fund.</p>
<h3><strong>Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)</strong></h3>
<p>At COP29, nations will be encouraged to commit to more ambitious and robust Nationally Determined Contributions; these are climate action commitments made by countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to climate change mitigation, aligning with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.</p>
<p>NDCs are submitted every 5 years to the UNFCCC, and with the next global stocktake approaching NDCs are to be put forward by February 2025, demonstrating increased ambition and concrete action plans. At COP29, there is likely to be a push to provide financial and technical support to developing countries to enable them to outline and implement NDCs of their own.</p>
<h3><strong>Article 6 of the Paris Agreement</strong></h3>
<p>Article 6 of the Paris Agreement aims to promote the use of carbon markets to achieve their climate targets. At COP29 we can expect discussions with regards to how a robust and well-regulated international carbon market can be developed and maintained. A key goal of COP29 is to finalise the rulebook for Article 6, which will provide clear guidelines for its implementation, and address concerns with regards to the quality of carbon credits, double counting and sustainable development.</p>


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<h2><b>Who is attending COP29</b></h2>
<p>With just 2 months to go until COP29 kicks off, there has been minimal discussion with regards to which World Leaders we can expect at the event.</p>
<p>From the UK, Ed Miliband, the newly appointed Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero, is confirmed to be leading UK negotiations for COP29. However, with the USA election taking place just 5 days before COP29 begins, it is unlikely that the President will be in attendance. As the event draws closer, we can expect more countries to confirm which delegates will attend.</p>


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<h2><strong>What to expect during COP29</strong></h2>
<p>An anticipated 40,000 participants are heading to COP29, almost half the number of attendees than at <a href="https://x.ecologi.com/articles/blog/whats-happening-at-cop28" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COP28</a> in Dubai last year; this poses the question of if bigger is necessarily better, fewer attendees reduce the environmental impact of the conferences, with the UN Climate Chief Simon Stiell <a href="https://www.climatechangenews.com/2024/04/24/peak-cop-un-looks-to-shrink-baku-and-belem-climate-summits/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">saying he hopes to see fewer people attending COPs </a>as size does not necessarily translate to the quality of outcomes.</p>
<p>COP29 still presents a crucial opportunity to make significant strides in climate action, by focusing on climate finance and reaffirming climate goals, countries can collectively work together to provide the funding and tools necessary to shape the trajectory of global climate efforts.</p>


<h2><strong>Partner with us for COP29 and beyond</strong></h2>
<p>Over the next 12 months we want to support as many businesses as possible to tackle climate change.</p>
<p>If your business is interested in a partnership to help scale climate action or starting its climate journey during COP29 or beyond, get in touch.</p>


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